I am Belle
by AngelaCharlene
Summary: A what happens next story: Belle deals with the aftermath of the second season- her feelings about Rumpelstiltskin's departure and the time she spent as Lacey. Neal wakes up in the Enchanted Forest. Eventually their stories will intertwine. This is my 1st OuaT fanfic. Comments welcome as long as they are constructive. :)
1. Chapter 1

Belle didn't want to turn back. She continued for a moment to walk briskly away from the dock, her eyes threatening to overflow with tears at any second. She didn't want to watch the man she loved vanish along with that pirate ship to some far away realm where she wouldn't be able to even send him a letter. Rumpelstiltskin may have believed he was heading off to his death, but she just couldn't allow herself to accept that, or she'd crumple all together. As it was, her steps felt unstable, her breath came in gulps, and her head spun- perhaps a side effect from all the alcohol she had consumed during her time as Lacey.

Finally, curiosity got the better of her, and she paused and turned around just in time to see the ship disappear into a swirling vortex. She realized she didn't even know where they were going. Wherever it was had been decided after everyone had already boarded the ship. Pulling her blue coat tighter against the ocean breeze, she stared at the spot where the Jolly Roger had just been. The little scroll Rumple had given her with instructions for a cloaking spell to protect the town sat in her pocket, and she fingered it absentmindedly, uncertain what to do next. Tears pooled at the rims of her eyes and trickled down her cheeks one by one.

She felt as if she had been awaken from a trance, which she supposed was true. After what felt like ages of having no memories of her past at all while stuck in the hospital, she had spent the last couple days believing she was this entirely different person: a barfly, a lush, someone who actually felt turned on by Rumple's violence. The realization made her shudder. For so long she had encouraged the good in him, and now she had to accept that her own alter ego had pulled him in the opposite direction.

Since Regina hadn't bothered giving her memories when she stayed in the asylum for years during the curse, she hadn't really had to deal with being both the way everyone else in the town had. Now, however, she remembered everything- ditching Rumple at Granny's to go have a make out session with Keith, feeling excited watching Rumple beat him up afterwards, staying up late into the night getting drunk at the Rabbit Hole (Belle wondered how her body even tolerated all the alcohol), asking for immortality, using Baelfire's shawl to wipe up a spill, etc. On top of that, she also had a whole lifetime of false memories that belonged to Lacey but never actually happened. The sensation unnerved her. Belle wished she could banish Lacey to the deepest corners of her mind.

Taking one last look at the horizon, Belle decided it was time to put on a brave face and head back into town. Granny's Diner had always been a warm and welcome place. Perhaps she could take comfort in some time with her good friend, Ruby. Ruby...she felt terrible about how she had behaved when her friend had visited her during her time in the hospital, getting so worked up that the nurse stabbed her with that awful syringe again. Belle felt as if she had to apologize to nearly all of Storybrooke for Lacey's behavior.

A small crowd filled the little eatery. Belle could hear loud voices celebrating that the failsafe trigger had been defeated, and no one was going to die after all. She wiped the dampness off her face, took a deep breathe, and opened the door. The chatter hushed, and eyes looked her way. Belle recognized the dwarves, Archie Hopper, Ruby, and Granny. A gruff bearded man studied Belle's face intently and pursed his lips.

"Lacey?" he ventured. Belle shook her and offered a smile. "Welcome back, sister!" He gave her a hearty hug.

"Oh, Dreamy! It's good to be me again!" said Belle.

"It's Grumpy now, remember?" said Grumpy.

"Yes, that's right..." said Belle. "I'm never going to get used to that." Everyone laughed. With the tension broken, the others crowded around her.

"Belle, is it really you?" said Ruby. "I've missed you so much!" The friends embraced, and Belle felt tears trickling down her face again. When she looked up, she noticed Ruby's cheeks were damp too.

"Have you heard from any of the others?" asked Archie. "The destruction stopped, but we haven't seen Emma or their highnesses since they left."

Belle became quiet. Her gaze dropped to the floor for a moment. "They've gone." The room exploded in confusion.

"What?!"

"Gone where?"

"Are they all right?"

"Are they coming back?"

"After they stopped the failsafe," Belle explained, "they discovered Henry had been kidnapped by Greg and Tamara and taken through a portal. They've all boarded the Jolly Roger to go rescue him...all of them, even Hook, Regina and...Rumple." The news stunned everyone into silence.


	2. Chapter 2

Meanwhile on the shores of the Enchanted Forest...

Mulan, Aurora, and Prince Phillip stood over the unconcious body of a man wearing a blue jacket and a scarf. His brown hair was tossled. His complexion was ashen, and his chest bled from a deep injury. "We need to get him help quickly, or he isn't going to make it!" said Aurora. Mulan took off her helmet, reached into her satchel, and retrieved a little leather pouch.

"A good friend once gave me some fairydust to use for emergencies. I think this counts." said Mulan. She reached her fingers into the pouch and drew out a pinch of powder which she proceeded to dust over the man's chest, healing his injury.

"I think he's waking up!" said Aurora as the man started to moan. She turned to Prince Phillip. "Hurry and get him some water." Prince Phillip nodded curtly and headed off with a canteen.

"Emma..?" the man moaned, his eyes still closed. Aurora and Mulan exchanged curious glances.

"Shhh...you're going to be ok." said Aurora as she kneeled over him, her lavender dress billowing around her. Phillip returned from the stream with water and held it carefully up to the man's lips while Aurora held his head up so he could drink. Mulan watched from behind.

The man's eyelids twitched for a moment and then fluttered open. His eyes darted around and took in his surroundings. "I'm...alive... Where am I?"

"You're in the Enchanted Forest. I'm Princess Aurora, and this is Prince Phillip and Mulan." Each bobbed in greeting. "Can you tell us your name? Do you remember what happened?"

"I'm Neal...Neal Cassidy." He said. "I was shot and then fell through a portal into another world. I didn't think I was going to make it...thank you."

"It is our duty to help others in need." said Mulan.

"You were mumbling a name before you woke up," said Aurora. "Emma? We met an Emma from another world not long ago. We helped her and her mother get home."

"Wait..Emma came here? Are we talking the same Emma? Long blonde hair and an affinity for witty sarcasm?" said Neal.

"Yes, that sounds about right!" Aurora laughed. "You know her?"

"Yeah, she's the mother of my son. Oh God, poor Emma. She must think I'm dead...and Henry-Man, I was just starting to get the hang of this father thing."

"I don't know if it's possible to find another portal to get you back." said Mulan. "We had quite the journey to get Emma and Mary Margaret home."

"Wait." said Aurora. "What about the room of fire? We might be able to at least talk to someone and let them know he's all right."

"I thought you stopped having the nightmares a few weeks ago" said Prince Phillpe. He put his arm around Aurora.

"Yes," said Aurora, "but I can reach it again. We still have more of those poppy seeds, don't we Mulan?" Neal looked at her quizzically. "Anyone who has been under the sleeping curse has the ability to go to this room." she explained. "Both Henry and Mary Margaret have also been under one."

"Really?" said Neal. "Wow, if I ever get to see Emma again, she'll have a lot of stories to fill me in on!"

"Are you sure you want to do this, Aurora? You know how dangerous that place is, and there's no guarantee any of them will actually be there at the same moment." said Mulan.

"Do it. I want to at least try something." said Aurora. Mulan raised her eyebrows, but she and Phillpe began to clear a spot in the sand so Aurora would be comfortable. Aurora sank down on her stomach and folded one arm underneath her head. "I'm ready." Phillip squeezed her hand as Mulan sprinkled her with the special dust.

Instantly Aurora felt herself drift out on consciousness, deeper and deeper until she reached that dreaded room again. It was just as she remembered it, flames and searing heat everywhere. She had to move slowly and deliberately to avoid getting burnt as the injuries would follow her into the waking world. "Hello!" she called out as loud as she could muster. "Is anyone out there?"

At first, all she heard was the roar of the fire, and she began to think her idea had been completely foolish. Why would any of them even think to come here if they believed Neal was dead? Then, a voice broke out from a distance. "Aurora! Aurora, is that you?" Aurora squinted and shielded her eyes with her hand.

"Henry! Over here!" said Aurora. The young boy carefully made his way over to the princess. "I'm so glad to see you!"

"I'm glad to see you too!" said Henry. "But what are you doing here?"

"I have a message for you and your family," Aurora shouted over the flames. "Your father...Neal? He's alive! He's going to be all right! We are going to try to get him home!"

Henry stared at Aurora with disbelieving eyes, barely darling to hope. "He's alive? My father's alive? Really?"

Aurora nodded. "He really wants to come back to you and Emma. But what are you doing here? Shouldn't your nightmares have ended by now?"

"I'm in trouble!" said Henry. "I've been kidnapped by these two crazy people. They took me through another portal. I think I'm here because of this thing they put on my wrist. It knocked me out!"

"Do you know where they took you?" asked Aurora.

Henry shook his head. "All I know is that it looked like a small island. Tell my dad! Hurry! I don't know what these people want with me. We have to get word to the others!"

"I will, Henry! I promise!" said Aurora. She could feel herself waking up. "Stay strong!"

Back in the Forest, Aurora bolted upright. Phillp pulled her to her feet and hugged her tightly as the others waited for a report. "So what happened?" said Mulan. "You look panicked. What's wrong?"

"Henry's been kidnapped!"


	3. Chapter 3

Belle continued, struggling to remain composed. "Rumpelstiltskin has left me with a cloaking spell to protect our town from other outsiders." She fished the little scroll out of her pocket. "He says it will make Storybrooke impossible to find."

Ruby turned to Belle and met her gaze with a look of concern. "They won't be able to return then...will they?" She asked. It was really more of a statement than a question. Belle felt her lip quiver and the sting of the truth surge through her anew as she shook her head.

Unable to speak anymore, Belle let her guard down and gulped loud, wailing sobs, spilling fresh tears all over the linoleum counter. "Oh, honey...shhh..." said Ruby. "We'll get through this." She held Belle for a moment, her own eyes shining with unshed tears, mourning the loss of her own close friends Snow and Charming. The mood in the little diner grew somber as everyone let it sink in that the town's fearless leaders had vanished and might never return.

For the moment, Belle sat a booth in Granny's Diner surrounded by her friends who huddled around her, taking in the enormity of their new situation. She twirled the tiny scroll in her fingers, then carefully pulled the red ribbon tied around it's center and unfurled it. Taking a deep breath in an effort to calm herself, she wiped her eyes on the back of her hand.

Ruby leaned over Belle's shoulder. "So...what does it say?"

Belle rattled off a list of ingredients. "Unicorn blood, butterfly wing, chameleon scales, and silver slime." She continued reading. "Mix together thoroughly and drop vile into the well. Everything can be found in the back room of my shop." Belle's voice caught as she read the closing line. " I know you can do this. I love you my sweet Belle, Forever yours...Rumplestiltskin."

Ruby put her hand on Belle's shoulder. "Wow. That is quite an...interesting list.

"All right, girl, enough tears!" Granny grabbed Belle gently and looked her in the eye. "You need to buck up now. I know this has been an especially difficult day for you as it has been for all of us, but we can't afford to let this town fall into shambles. It's time to protect it, so let's get to work! It's what they'd want us to do." Several nods among the group echoed her sentiment.

"Yes, of course. You're right." said Belle. "Thanks, Granny."

"Belle," said Grumpy, "if you need anything, and help at all, just say the word. My brothers and I are here for you." There was a murmur of agreement. "It's time for you to find your inner hero again!"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Henry's in trouble?" said Neal. His forehead crinkled and his expression darkened. "It must have been Greg and Tamara. I can't believe I ever trusted her! Where did they take him?"

"He said he didn't know. They went through a portal!" said Aurora. "He said something about an island."

"An Island? Oh God, if that's where I think it is, we need to get him out of there. You said Emma and Mary Margaret were here. How did they get back home?"

"Lake Nostros, it returns things that are lost," said Aurora, "but they had ashes from a magic wardrobe as well as a special compass."

"Then that's our starting point!" said Neal. "Lead the way!" He began to stand up from the sand only to waver a bit unsteadily.

"We can't yet." Mulan took Neal's arm in an attempt to steady him. "Your wound might be healed, but you are still weak. You need to rest. Save your strength."

"I need to save my son. I need to get back to Emma." He pulled free from Mulan's grasp but then stumbled over a stray rock causing something small, flat, and black to fall out of her pocket and skid on the sand.

"What in the world is that?" asked Philip, eying the object with suspicion.

"Communication device," said Neal, grabbing his cellphone, "but of course, there's no signal here." He fiddled with the screen absently. "Wait, there can't be.."

"What is it?" Aurora stared at the little screen.

"It's showing bars! I know there are no phone towers in the Enchanted Forest." Neal held his cell in the air, trying to figure out where the signal was coming from. He walked towards Mulan. "Hey, it's getting stronger when I point it towards you!"

Mulan's eyes widened. On a whim, she pulled out the little velvet pouch of fairydust and held it next to the device. "That's it!" said Neal. "Whatever you have in there has some crazy effect!"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Unexpected contemporary music suddenly interrupted Belle's thoughts. "Where's that coming from?"

"Behind the kitchen counter, I think." said Granny. "Emma dropped her phone in here before she went to stop the failsafe." Belle stood up and followed Granny's gaze to a small black touchscreen phone, the screen indicating an incoming call.

"Neal?" Belle read on the caller ID. "Wait isn't that-" she gasped with recognition. Her voice shook as she tapped the screen to answer the call. "Hello?"

"Emma?" came the reply.

"No..Emma isn't here. This is Belle."

"Belle? My father's girlfriend?"

New tears lined Belle's eyes. This time, however, they were tears of joy. "Oh! Baelfire, it really is you! You're alive!"


	4. Chapter 4

In the midsts of her exuberance, however, memories of her time as Lacey haunted Belle again. The one time Baelfire had encountered her, she had been encouraging his father to threaten the unfortunate Doctor Whale on the absurd charge of looking at her. As Lacey, watching her man flaunt his power in front of another man thrilled her, and she had laughed at Bae's comments about turning a man into a snail. Now she felt sick.

"Where is Emma? I need to speak to her." The cold tone in his voice told Belle she was right. He didn't trust her.

Belle took a deep breath. "Henry was kidnapped. They've all gone after him through a portal aboard Hook's ship. Rumple- your father- he's gone with them."

A pause, then, "My father? He's gone to help too?"

"He blames himself for what happened to you, Baelfire. He's saving your son in your honor. I know you two weren't on the best terms, but deep inside, he's a good man. He truly loves you."

"Wow...well, why did he wait until he thought I was gone to show it. He didn't seem to want to have anything to do with me. He was having more fun flaunting his power for you," said Neal.

Belle cringed. "He was afraid...afraid that you'd keep pushing him away. As for my role, well, I wasn't myself. I was under a curse, turned into someone I wasn't by Regina, someone who liked Rumple's dark side. Rumple was trying to bring the real me back to him. You can't blame him for that."

"So you really think he's trying to change?" Neal still sounded skeptical.

Belle smiled. "He is! I promise- you'd be proud of him! Where are you right now, anyway?"

"This is going to sound crazy. I'm in the Enchanted Forest. Some kind people saved me with magic. Apparently magic can also act as a phone signal- go figure!"

"That's amazing, truly!" said Belle. "But can you get back to Storybrooke?"

"We are going to try."

A new thought crossed Belle's mind, and she wrinkled her forehead. "Baelfire, I have to tell you. Your father left me with instructions to cloak the town with magic for protection from future outsiders. If I cast it, you won't be able to find us."

"I see. Do you think you could hold off on casting it? I need to get back. I need to find my son."

"I suppose I could-"

"Look, just give me a couple days."

"All right, Baelfire. Be safe, all right? I wish I could tell Rumple you are alive. He would be so happy. I miss him so much." Belle sighed.

"Yeah, well- you be safe too. I'll try to get you an update, but once this phone dies, I won't be able to charge it. If I'm not back in 3 days, go ahead and cloak the town. I'd rather everyone have protection.

"Yes, I'll do that. Goodbye, Bae. Good luck."

"Bye." Click.

As Belle hung up, she realized everyone was watching her. "Okay, everyone," she began, summoning her inner leader, "change of plans." She stood up, shoulders back, and head held high. "We are going to hold off the cloaking spell for 3 days because Rumplestilskin's son is trying to find his way home, but we need border patrollers on every road leading out of town. Grumpy, can I assign that to you and the rest of the dwarfs?"

"You got it, sister." said Grumpy. He motioned to his brothers, and they gathered together and began to plan their strategy.

"Granny, I need your help keeping an eye on the town itself. All the usual leaders have left us." said Belle.

Granny nodded. "Now we're talking! If anyone decides to monkey around, they'll have to answer to me and my crossbow. That will keep them in line!"

Belle then turned to Archie. "Archie, you're a therapist, right?" Archie nodded. "Can you come with me? There's someone I think need to talk to."

Ruby smiled sadly at Belle. "Your father?"

"Yeah..." said Belle. "I know what he tried to do to me was terrible, but how can I try to patch things up between Rumple and his son if I don't try to find closure with my own father?"

"And we'll be right there beside you," said Archie.

With Ruby's help since she had been there before, the three of them paced to Mo's flower shop, Game of Thorns. They stopped just outside a small wood paneled structure overflowing with bright green leaves and colorful flowers that poked out of every crevice. Belle hesitated at the red door. Ruby squeezed her hand, and Belle took a deep breath and pulled gently on the handle.

In the dimly lit space, the figure of a man stood behind the counter. Middle aged with a decent sized girth and a baseball cap, the man stared intently as his new customers. "Belle?" he gasped.

"Hello father."

Tears pooled at the rims of Mo's eyes. "You've come back to me."

"I've come back because after all that's happened, I think we need to talk." Belle remained several feet from her father, although she sensed his regret.

"I heard about what happened to you, that you fell over the line and lost your memories. I had no idea you didn't have any cursed memories at all, just an empty head. I didn't know that was the life I'd almost doomed you to myself. I'm so sorry, Darling."

"Yeah, well, if you'd given me a chance to explain, I could have told you I was no longer in the Dark Castle when the curse hit. He let me go only to have me abducted by the Queen to use as leverage."

"He let you go? That monster let you go?" Mo looked agast.

"I told you, he's not a monster. He's changed."

Mo's face darkened. "Do you know what that man of yours did last year before the curse broke?" Belle shook her head. "He beat me- beat me so hard I ended up in the hospital, all because of a little broken cup- yelling at me that something was my fault. They locked him away, but that devil somehow squirmed his way through the system and got out."

Belle mulled for a moment, taking in this new information. "A broken cup? Papa, he thought I was dead. He'd been led to believe that you were resposible for my death. He becomes very dark when he's hurting. He loves me very much, and I him."

"I don't know if I'll ever be able to accept that, Belle, I'm sorry."

Belle cast her eyes downward, "Just let me lead my own life. That's all I ask."

"Might I be included in that life again?" Mo extended his arms towards his daughter. Finally closing the distance between them, Belle allowed him to hug her.

"Yes," she managed.


End file.
